Thomas the Rhymer

Kushner takes one of the most basic Celtic myths -- the human taken into the land of Faerie -- and fashions it around the life of an historical figure, Thomas the Rhymer. She tells the story from many perspectives to give the myth weight, a sense of time and place, and most of all, an understanding of why the story has endured. Rarely, a fantasy novel earns the right to be called classic; this one does.

This is not a book to read if youre seeking a stirring adventure. Thomas does go on a long, strange trip, but the focus is as much on how his life impacts the people important to him as it is on his experiences in Elfland. Kushners decision to write only Thomass Elfland experiences in his own voice, then, is a clever one. Also, seeing Thomas before and after his journey through the eyes of others reveals the extent of the change in him more thoroughly than if we remained in his head. Kushner does an excellent job of giving each of the four narrators a distinct perspective, a difficult thing to do. And because they see different things in each other and percieve their relationships with one another differently, theres the opportunity to ponder how it is we get along in the world when we all have disparate visions of reality. This is a marvelously subtle way to question whether True Thomas can ever wholly tell the truth. Is the truth absolute, or is it changeable depending on individual understanding? This question lingers long after the book is shut. So why did I give Thomas the Rhymer only three stars? Well, for all the lovely writing and thoughtful structure, it left me cold. For one, the Faery Queen who is the heart of all this trouble and change seemed to me little more than a blowup doll. She laid a couple of spells on Thomas, but mostly all they did was copulate, and I needed either for her to be more interesting or to feel more of why Thomas was infatuated with her. (Because of the distance I felt from her, also, the ending of the book was less moving for me than it should have been.) Apart from that, I felt Kushner passed over a great opportunity to explore what the effects of Thomass truth-saying might be. There was some of that, certainly, in the final section of the book, but much was made of the gift of truth-telling in Faery (and whether it was a gift at all), and then very little was done with it. Reading this book is a gamble. It has its virtues, and if you think youll enjoy piecing together a larger meaning based on the fragments of story and varying points of view, youll probably enjoy it well enough. However, if you want a story that swallows you whole and spits you out at the end with no respite to sit back and intellectualize, this may not be for you.

Excelent tale that sucks you in from the very first. A rare treat.

Thomas the Rhymer came highly recommended to me by the lady who hosted our role-playing group. Its of a genre that Id never read before. This is a fantastical tale told in the points of view of the Rhymers hosts, his human wife, and himself. Of a Ren-Faire setting, its descriptions are fluid and visible to the reader. Its a story of many kinds of love -- the love of the Rhymers childless hosts of the Rhymer and of the girl up the hill, and of the Rhymer of them, of the girl, and of the Elfin Queen who cannot love him back in a way that he understands. Its a tale of human growth, of restraint, of sadness, and of joy. I will be looking for more books by Ellen Kushner, and I highly recommend Thomas the Rhymer to you.

Im always shocked that Ellen Kushner is not more well known. She blends fantasy with interesting characters so seamlessly. The words are so well written that music is in the background of my mind as I read. There is a reason why there is always a recommendation from Neil Gaiman.

I read several reviews of this book several years ago and received several more word-of-mouth reviews since them. All were raves. The facts that the book was out-of-print and hard to get added to the mystique. So, when I saw the book on a friends shelf, I was beside myself with rapture, and immediately borrowed the book and read it. Though it was a good story, true to the ballad, and beautifully written, it was not the religious experience I was anticipating. Perhaps my expectations were too high, I just dont know. But mostly, I did not find Thomas to be a particulary sympathetic character, The people that loved him did not find their love returned, I fear. Thomas was a touch too self-centered for my tastes. All in all though, Im glad I finally found and read the book. I would recommend it to all fantasy fans and fans of Celtic/Scottish/British folklore if for no other reason than historic relevance.

Nice classic story. Very interesting read and a fun tale. If you like Irish history, its a good read. And if you dont, you should read more :)

Very enjoyable read in four rather distinct sections (each told from the perspective of a different character). Not epic, which is something of a relief, but finely told. The long middle section about the stay in Fairie Land is atmospheric, but so too are the descriptions of regular, mundane medieval life.